FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Uniform Law Commission Amends the Uniform Parentage Act to Require Disclosure of Donor Identifying Information Upon Request
January 3, 2024 — The Uniform Law Commission (ULC) has amended Article 9 of the Uniform Parentage Act (UPA), which will now require gamete banks to provide a donor’s identifying information to a resulting adult donor conceived person upon request. U.S. Donor Conceived Council (USDCC) played an active role in securing this amendment.
“This amendment would not have succeeded without the involvement of donor conceived persons who spoke before the ULC about the harms of donor anonymity. While the amendment must still become law and will not fix other fertility industry practices that harm donor conceived persons and their families, it is a step toward a better future,” said Tyler Levy Sniff, USDCC vice president of legal affairs. “We also appreciate comments in favor of this amendment from a few cryobanks,” Levy Sniff continued.
The amended language removes former Section 904, which permitted gamete donors to “opt out” of the disclosure of their identifying information. Section 901, which defines “identifying information,” will now include the donor’s telephone number and email address. Finally, Section 905, regarding the disclosure of identifying information and medical history, will provide as follows:
(a) On request of a child conceived by assisted reproduction who attains 18 years of age, a gamete bank or fertility clinic licensed in this state which collected the gametes used in the assisted reproduction shall provide the child with identifying information of the donor who provided gametes.
(b) Regardless whether a child has made a request under Section 905 (a), on request of a child conceived by assisted reproduction who attains 18 years of age, or, if the child is a minor, of a parent or guardian of the child, a gamete bank or fertility clinic licensed in this state which collected the gametes used in the assisted reproduction shall provide the child or, if the child is a minor, the parent or guardian of the child, access to nonidentifying medical history of the donor.
(c) On request of a child conceived by assisted reproduction who attains 18 years of age, or, if the child is a minor, of a parent or guardian of the child, a gamete bank or fertility clinic licensed in this state which received the gametes used in the assisted reproduction from another gamete bank or fertility clinic shall disclose to the child or, if the child is a minor, the parent or guardian of the child, the name, address, telephone number, and electronic mail address of the gamete bank or fertility clinic from which it received the gametes.
In celebrating this amendment, USDCC also recognizes the need to update parentage laws to protect LGBTQ+ families. The UPA’s amended Article 9 will better protect the interests of donor conceived people and their families to access information about the donor. USDCC applauds the hard work LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations have done to secure equal protections for all families and looks forward to working alongside these groups to pass the amended UPA and protect families formed through assisted reproduction.
In addition to assisting in and supporting efforts to enact the amended UPA in more states, USDCC looks forward to continuing its own work on separate legislation to address the other issues donor conceived people face, including limits on the number of families created from a single donor.
USDCC is an all-volunteer 501(c)(3) nonprofit that relies on donations. Learn more about USDCC at usdcc.org.
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